Aligning implement for optical fibers and optical fiber array fabricated by use of the aligning implement

ABSTRACT

There is provided an aligning implement for optical fibers by which an optical fiber array having a plurality of optical fibers aligned substantially in parallel with one another with a predetermined pitch therebetween can easily be fabricated. The aligning implement comprises a substrate having a plurality of ridges formed on one surface thereof with the predetermined pitch and aligned substantially in parallel with one another, and a cover member having a plurality of ridges formed on one surface thereof with the predetermined pitch and aligned substantially in parallel with one another. The widths of the ridges of the substrate and of the cover member are set to have such values that the cover member is movable relative to the substrate in the direction substantially orthogonal to the ridges in a state that the ridges of the substrate and of the cover member are engaged with one another, and each optical fiber is nipped, positioned and held between the wall surface of each ridge of the substrate and the wall surface of each corresponding ridge of the cover member by sliding of the cover member in the direction substantially orthogonal to the ridges.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0001] 1. Field of the Invention

[0002] The present invention relates to an optical fiber array providedwith a plurality of optical fibers that are aligned substantially inparallel with one another with a predetermined pitch therebetween, andmore particularly, to an aligning implement for optical fibers thatmakes the fabrication of a optical fiber array easy, and to an opticalfiber array fabricated by use of the aligning implement.

[0003] 2. Description of the Related Art

[0004] As is well known, an optical fiber array is fabricated by use ofan aligning implement or element that functions to align a plurality ofoptical fibers substantially in parallel with one another with apredetermined pitch therebetween. An optical fiber array is used, forexample, in an optical module that is capable of transmitting and/orreceiving a plurality of optical signals in order to transmit aplurality of optical signals emitted from a surface light emitting typeoptical element such as, for example, a laser diode array to an externalcircuit, device, apparatus or the like or to enter a plurality ofoptical signals transmitted from an external circuit, device, apparatusor the like into a surface light receiving type optical element such as,for example, a photodiode array. In addition, an optical fiber array isalso used in an optical connector or in case of connecting two opticalfiber arrays with each other.

[0005]FIG. 1 is a front view showing a prior art optical fiber arrayfabricated by use of a prior art aligning implement for optical fibers,and FIG. 2 is a front view showing the prior art optical fiber array inFIG. 1 in a state that a V-groove formed substrate and a lid member ofthe aligning implement for optical are being separated. The aligningimplement 10 for optical fibers used in this optical fiber arraycomprises a V-groove formed substrate 12 having a plurality of (eight,in this example) V-grooves (each having a V-shape in section) 14 formedsubstantially in parallel with one another with a predetermined pitchtherebetween on one surface (top surface in the figure) of a substrate(for example, a single crystal silicon substrate) having a generallyrectangular or square shape in plan, for example, and a lid member 13having a generally rectangular or square shape in plan, that is mountedon the top surface of the V-groove formed substrate 12.

[0006] A plurality of (eight, in this example) optical fibers 11 aredisposed in the corresponding V-grooves 14 of the V-groove formedsubstrate 12, respectively, and the lid member 13 is mounted and fixedon the top surface of the V-groove formed substrate 12 in such mannerthat the lid member 13 covers the surface of the V-grooves 14. As aresult, as shown in FIG. 1, each optical fiber 11 is located and securedin the corresponding V-groove 14, and the plurality of optical fibers 11are aligned with a predetermined pitch therebetween and an optical fiberarray is thus fabricated. Since the V-grooves 14 have been aligned andformed with high accuracy, the plurality of optical fibers 11 positionedand secured in the respective V-grooves 14 have been aligned with apredetermined pitch therebetween with high accuracy. Further, ingeneral, in case of fixing the optical fibers 11 each having a sheathingor jacket on the external surface thereof on the V-groove formedsubstrate 12 by use of an adhesive, the lid member 13 is adhered andfixed on the V-groove formed substrate 12 together with the opticalfibers 11 by the adhesive flowing toward the V-grooves 14 of theV-groove formed substrate 12 and the lid member 13. It is needless tosay that the lid member 13 may be fixed on the V-groove formed substrate12 by use of any other means.

[0007] Next, a manufacturing method of the above-described optical fiberarray will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 3 to 5. FIG. 3is a plan view showing the V-groove formed substrate 12 shown in FIGS. 1and 2, FIG. 4 is a plan view showing a state that the optical fibers 11have been aligned on the V-groove formed substrate 12 shown in FIG. 3,and FIG. 5 is a plan view showing a state that the lid member 13 hasbeen mounted on the V-groove formed substrate 12 in such manner that thelid member 13 covers the surface of the V-grooves 14 of the V-grooveformed substrate 12. As shown in FIG. 3, the V-groove formed substrate12 is a plate-like substrate having a generally square shape in plan inthis example, and on about the central portion thereof is formed a stepportion 15 extending linearly from the upper end thereof to the lowerend thereof so that two areas the thickness (height) of which differsfrom each other are formed on both sides of the linear step portion 15.Each of the areas has a generally rectangular shape in plan. In theillustrated example, the two areas 12L and 12R each having a generallyrectangular shape in plan are formed on the left-hand side andright-hand side of the step portion 15 respectively, and a plurality of(eight, in this example) V-grooves 14 are formed with a predeterminedpitch therebetween with high precision on the left-hand side area 12L.The right-hand side area 12R of the V-groove formed substrate 12 has itsthickness thinner (its height lower) than that of the left-hand sidearea 12L on which the V-grooves 14 are formed.

[0008] The reason that a difference in thickness or level is providedbetween the left side area 12L and the right side area 12R of theV-groove formed substrate 12 is such that as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, theoptical fibers 11 can be closely positioned and fixed in thecorresponding V-grooves 14, that is, the optical fibers 11 can bepositioned and fixed in the corresponding V-grooves 14 in such mannerthat each optical fiber is in contact with the both wall surfaces of thecorresponding V-groove. As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, since only theoptical fibers (the core and the cladding covering the exterior surfacethereof) 11 are disposed in the V-grooves 14, it is difficult to closelylocate and secure the optical fibers 11 in the corresponding V-grooves14 when the surface of the V-grooves 14 is covered with the lid member13 unless the thickness of the right side area 12R of the V-grooveformed substrate 12 on which the sheathings (jackets) 11B covering theoptical fibers 11 and having larger diameters are put is thinner thanthat of the left side area 12L (unless the height of the right side area12R is lower than that of the left side area 12L). Accordingly, it ispreferred that the difference in thickness or height between the leftside area 12L and the right side area 12R of the V-groove formedsubstrate 12 is set to be equal to or somewhat larger than a differencebetween the diameter of the optical fiber 11 and the diameter of thejacket 11B.

[0009] As shown in FIG. 4, the optical fibers 11 are disposed in thecorresponding V-grooves 14 of the V-groove formed substrate 12 shown inFIG. 3 respectively as well as the jackets 11B of the optical fibers 11are disposed on the right side area 12R, and then the optical fibers 11are aligned. Next, as shown in FIG. 5, the lid member 13 is mounted onthe left side area 12L of the V-groove formed substrate 12 in suchmanner that the lid member 13 covers the surface of the V-grooves 14 ofthe V-groove formed substrate 12, and then it is fixed thereon by useof, for example, an adhesive. Thereafter, the portions of the opticalfibers 11 projecting from the end surface of the left side area 12L ofthe V-groove formed substrate 12 are severed and removed, and thus, anoptical fiber array is completed.

[0010] Further, after the projecting portions of the optical fibers 11have been severed, it is preferred to abrade and polish the end surfacesof the optical fibers 1. In such case, the end surface of the left sidearea 12L (the end surfaces of the V-grooves 14) of the V-groove formedsubstrate 12 and the end surface of the lid member 13 may be abraded andpolished together with the end surfaces of the optical fibers 11.

[0011] In case of fabricating an optical fiber by use of the V-grooveformed substrate 12 like the above prior art, it is required to disposethe optical fibers 11 in the corresponding V-grooves 14 of the V-grooveformed substrate 12 one by one and to align the jackets 11B of theoptical fibers 11 on the V-groove formed substrate 12 with accuracy.Since the width of each V-groove 14 is very narrow and the diameter ofeach optical fiber 11 is much smaller, the above-described work or jobis very complicated and troublesome, and hence there are problems thatit takes a lot of time as well as great skill is required.

[0012] On the other hand, another prior art aligning implement foroptical fibers is described in, for example, Japanese Patent ApplicationPublication No. 02-26395 (26395/1990). Unlike an aligning implement foraligning a plurality of optical fibers in a line as the above-describedprior art, this another prior art aligning implement functions to aligna plurality of optical fibers in plural lines. The prior art aligningimplement disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Publication No.02-26395 will be briefly explained with reference to FIGS. 6 to 8.

[0013] As shown in FIG. 6, in the prior art aligning implement foroptical fibers, there is provided a positioning plate 20 in which aplurality of through holes 21 each having a generally rhombic shape insection are formed in a matrix manner (in this example, a matrix of 4×8)through a substrate 22 having a generally rectangular shape in plan, andthe aligning implement for optical fibers is constructed by use of twopositioning plates 20. As shown in FIG. 7, the two positioning plates20A and 20B are laid one on top of the other in the state that therhombic through holes 21A and 21B (see FIG. 8) of the two positioningplates 20A and 20B are aligned with each other, and then optical fibers11 are inserted into corresponding through holes 21A and 21B one fiberfor one hole. Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 8 by an arrow 23, the frontside positioning plate 20A, for example, is moved in the direction of anextension of a diagonal line connecting between two opposed acute anglesof each through hole 21B. As a result, each optical fiber 11 is caughtand held between the wall surfaces of each through hole 21A of the frontside positioning plate 20A, the wall surfaces forming one of the twoacute angles of each through hole 21A, and the wall surfaces of eachcorresponding through hole 21B of the rear side positioning plate 20B,the wall surfaces forming the opposite angle of the two acute angles ofeach through hole 21B, as shown in FIG. 8. Thus, the 32 optical fibers11 can be aligned in four rows each having eight optical fibers, namely,in a matrix of 4×8. It goes without saying that if there is used apositioning plate in which a plurality of through holes 21 each having agenerally rhombic shape in section are formed in a line through asubstrate 22 having a generally rectangular shape in plan, a pluralityof optical fibers 11 can be aligned in a line.

[0014] In case a plurality of optical fibers are aligned in a line orplural lines by use of two positioning plates as described in the aboveJapanese Patent Application Publication No. 02-26395, the plurality ofoptical fibers are merely inserted into the corresponding through holeseach having a generally rhombic shape of the two positioning plates thatare laid one on top of the other. Therefore, it is unnecessary to alignthe optical fibers one by one on a V-groove formed substrate with highaccuracy as in the first prior art described above. Consequently, thereis no need for carrying out a work or job that is very complicated andtroublesome and takes a lot of time, and also great skill is notrequired. Accordingly, it is possible to align a plurality of opticalfibers comparatively with ease.

[0015] However, in the prior art disclosed in the above Japanese PatentApplication Publication No. 02-26395, forces or pressures of oppositedirections are applied to each optical fiber at different positionsthereof in the axial direction from the side of the optical fiber by thetwo, positioning plates, that is, a couple of forces is applied to eachoptical fiber. As a result, there occurs a problem that positioning ofthe optical fibers cannot be accomplished with high precision for reasonthat ends of optical fibers are deviated or deflected due to a bendingmoment of the couple, for example.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0016] It is an object of the present invention to provide an aligningimplement for optical fibers by which a plurality of optical fibers canbe easily aligned with one another with high accuracy.

[0017] It is another object of the present invention to provide anoptical fiber array having high accuracy that is fabricated by use ofthe aforesaid aligning implement for optical fibers.

[0018] In order to accomplish the foregoing objects, in a first aspectof the present invention, there is provided an aligning implement foroptical fibers for aligning a plurality of optical fibers, that isadapted to be used in an optical fiber array having a plurality ofoptical fibers aligned substantially in parallel with one another with apredetermined pitch therebetween, the aligning implement comprising: asubstrate having a plurality of ridges formed on one surface of thesubstrate substantially in parallel with one another with thepredetermined pitch; and a cover member having a plurality of ridgesformed on one surface of the cover member substantially in parallel withone another with the predetermined pitch, and wherein the width of theridges of the substrate and the width of the ridges of the cover memberare set to have such values that the cover member is movable relative tothe substrate in the direction substantially orthogonal to the ridges ina state that the ridges of the substrate and the ridges of the covermember are engaged with one another, and the substrate and the covermember are arranged such that in the state that the ridges of thesubstrate and the ridges of the cover member are engaged with oneanother, sliding of the cover member in the direction substantiallyorthogonal to the ridges relative to the substrate causes each opticalfiber to be nipped, positioned and held between the wall surface of eachridge of the substrate and the wall surface of each corresponding ridgeof the cover member.

[0019] In a preferred embodiment, the one surface of the substrate isformed such that the thickness of one side thereof is thicker than thatof the other side thereof, and the ridges are formed on the thicker sidesurface and optical fibers each having a sheathing are put on thethinner side surface.

[0020] In another preferred embodiment, at least one guide groove isformed on either one of the substrate or the cover member in thedirection substantially orthogonal to the ridges, and on the other ofthe substrate or the cover member is formed at least one protrusion thatis fitted in and guided by the guide groove.

[0021] The substrate and the cover member may be formed by applying adry etching to a silicon substrate. Alternatively, the substrate and thecover member may be formed by applying a dry etching to a siliconsubstrate.

[0022] In a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided anoptical fiber array comprising the aforesaid aligning implement foroptical fibers.

[0023] With the construction as described above, each optical fiber ismerely put in the space that is comparatively enough room for theoptical fiber between the adjacent ridges of the substrate, and there isno need to align the optical fibers accurately. Consequently, the workof putting the optical fibers on the substrate becomes very easy and theworking hours can be greatly reduced. Accordingly, the workingefficiency is remarkably improved. In addition, the ridges of the covermember and the ridges of the substrate are merely engaged with oneanother in such manner that each of the optical fibers is locatedbetween one of the ridges of the cover member and the corresponding oneof the ridges of the substrate, and the respective optical fibers arepositioned and held by sliding the cover member thereby to nip eachoptical fiber between the two wall surfaces of the two ridges.Therefore, each optical fiber has pushing forces or pressures appliedthereto at the same positions in the axial direction. For this reason,the optical fibers can be stably positioned, held and aligned with highaccuracy.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0024]FIG. 1 is a front view showing a prior art optical fiber arrayfabricated by use of a prior art aligning implement for optical fibers;

[0025]FIG. 2 is a front view showing the prior art optical fiber arrayin FIG. 1 in a state that a V-groove formed substrate and a lid memberof the aligning implement for optical are being separated;

[0026]FIG. 3 is a plan view showing the V-groove formed substrate shownin FIGS. 1 and 2;

[0027]FIG. 4 is a plan view showing a state that a plurality of opticalfibers have been disposed and aligned on the V-groove formed substrate12 shown in FIG. 3;

[0028]FIG. 5 is a plan view showing a state that the lid member has beenmounted on the V-groove formed substrate shown in FIG. 4;

[0029]FIG. 6 is a perspective view illustrating a positioning plate thatis a component of another prior art aligning implement for opticalfibers;

[0030]FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing a state that a plurality ofoptical fibers have been aligned in plural lines by use of two of thepositioning plate shown in FIG. 6;

[0031]FIG. 8 is an illustration for explaining a manner that an opticalfiber is positioned and held by two through holes each having agenerally rhombic shape in section;

[0032]FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing an optical fiber arrayaccording to the present invention fabricated by use of a firstembodiment of the aligning implement for optical fibers according to thepresent invention;

[0033]FIGS. 10A, 10B and 10C are front views for explaining amanufacturing process of the optical fiber array shown in FIG. 9;

[0034]FIGS. 11A, 11B and 11C are plan views for explaining amanufacturing process of the optical fiber array shown in FIG. 9;

[0035]FIG. 12 shows a substrate of a second embodiment of the aligningimplement according to the present invention, wherein FIG. 12A is a planview of the substrate, FIG. 12B is a left-hand side view of FIG. 12A andFIG. 12C is a bottom side view of FIG. 12A;

[0036]FIG. 13 shows a cover member of a second embodiment of thealigning implement according to the present invention, wherein FIG. 13Ais a plan view of the cover member, FIG. 13B is a left-hand side view ofFIG. 13A and FIG. 13C is a bottom side view of FIG. 13A;

[0037]FIGS. 14A, 14B and 14C are front views for explaining amanufacturing process of the optical fiber array according to thepresent invention fabricated by use of a third embodiment of thealigning implement for optical fibers according to the presentinvention;

[0038]FIG. 15A is a front view showing a fourth embodiment of thealigning implement for optical fibers according to the present inventionin a state that a cover member and a substrate of the aligning implementare being separated, and FIG. 15B is a right-hand side view of FIG. 15A;

[0039]FIG. 16A is a front view showing a fourth embodiment of thealigning implement for optical fibers according to the present inventionin a state that the cover member and the substrate of the aligningimplement are engaged with each other, and FIG. 16B is a right-hand sideview of FIG. 16A;

[0040]FIGS. 17A to 17G are front views for explaining a manufacturingprocess of the substrate of the aligning implement for optical fibersshown in FIGS. 15A and 16A;

[0041]FIGS. 18A to 18G are right-hand side views of FIGS. 17A to 17G,respectively;

[0042]FIGS. 19A to 19D are front views for explaining a manufacturingprocess of the cover member of the aligning implement for optical fibersshown in FIGS. 15A and 16A; and

[0043]FIGS. 20A to 20D are right-hand side views of FIGS. 19A to 19D,respectively.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0044] The preferred embodiments of the present invention will now bedescribed in detail with reference to FIGS. 9 to 20. The presentinvention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and shouldnot be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth hereinafter;rather, the embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will bethorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the inventionto those skilled in the art.

[0045] First, there will be described a first embodiment of the aligningimplement for optical fibers according to the present invention and anoptical fiber array according to the present invention fabricated by useof the first embodiment of the aligning implement in detail withreference to FIGS. 9 to 11.

[0046]FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing the optical fiber arrayaccording to the present invention fabricated by use of the firstembodiment of the aligning implement for optical fibers according to thepresent invention, FIGS. 10A, 10B and 10C are front views for explaininga manufacturing process of the optical fiber array shown in FIG. 9, andFIGS. 11A, 11B and 11C are plan views for explaining a manufacturingprocess of the optical fiber array shown in FIG. 9. Further, in FIGS. 9to 11, elements, members and portions therein corresponding to those inFIGS. 1 to 5 will be shown by the same reference characters or numbersaffixed thereto, and explanation thereof will be omitted unlessnecessary.

[0047] The aligning implement 30 for optical fibers of the firstembodiment comprises a cover member or component 32 having a generallyrectangular shape in plan and a substrate 31 having a generallyrectangular or square shape in plan. As shown in FIG. 11A, in thisembodiment, the substrate 31 is a plate-like member having a generallysquare shape in plan, and on substantially the central portion of onesurface (the top surface in this embodiment) of the substrate 31 isformed a step portion 35 extending linearly from the upper end thereofto the lower end thereof so that a first and a second areas 31L and 31Rdiffering in thickness (height) thereof from each other are formed onboth sides (left-hand side and right-hand side in the figure) of thelinear step portion 35. Each of the areas 31L and 31R has a generallyrectangular shape in plan. On the first area 31L of a generallyrectangle in plan situated at one side of the step portion 35 are formeda plurality of (eight, in this example) ridges or ribs 33 in parallelwith one another with a predetermined pitch therebetween and with highaccuracy. The ridges 33 extend from the edge of the major side of thefirst area 31L toward the second area 31R situated at the other side ofthe step portion 35. The pitch of the ridges 33 is set to be equal tothe pitch of optical fibers of an optical fiber array to be fabricated.Each ridge 33 has a generally rectangular shape in section, stands erectfrom the top surface of the substrate 31, and extends until a positionthat is a little short of the step portion 35.

[0048] Optical fibers 11 are put on elongate spaces formed between theadjacent ridges 33 on the first area 31L, respectively. Further, in thisembodiment, the leftmost ridge 33E in FIG. 10A (the uppermost ridge 33Ein FIG. 11A) among the ridges 33 formed on the first area 31L is formedat a position on the first area 31L by which an elongate region remainson the outside of the leftmost ridge 33E (between the leftmost ridge 33Eand one end of the first area 31L), the elongate region having its widththat is sufficient to put an optical fiber thereon. Accordingly, anoptical fiber 11 is also put on the elongate region remaining on theoutside of the ridge 33E. Consequently, a number of optical fibers 11equal to the number of the ridges 33 are put on the substrate 31.

[0049] The optical fibers 11 extend on the substrate 31 from the secondarea 31R of a generally rectangle in plan situated at the other side ofthe step portion 35 to the first area 31L situated at the one side ofthe step portion 35, and on the second area 31R are put the opticalfibers 11 having sheathings or jackets 11B. For this reason, likewisethe above-described first prior art, the second area 31R has itsthickness thinner (its height lower) than that of the first area 31L. Itis preferred that the difference in thickness or height between thefirst area 31L and the second area 31R of the substrate 31 is set to beequal to or somewhat larger than a difference between the diameter ofthe optical fiber 11 and the diameter of the jacket 11B.

[0050] The cover member 32 is a plate-like member having a generallyrectangular shape in plan as shown in FIGS. 9, 11B and 11C, and ismounted on the substrate 31 in such manner that it covers the topsurface of the first area 31L of the substrate 31. Accordingly, as willbe understood from FIGS. 11B and 11C, the size in plan of the covermember 32 is substantially equal to that of the first area 31L of thesubstrate 31.

[0051] The cover member 32 has a plurality of (eight, in thisembodiment) ridges or ribs 34 formed on the bottom surface thereof inparallel with one another with the same pitch as that of the ridges 33of the substrate 31 and with high accuracy. The ridges 34 extend fromthe edge of one major side of the cover member 32 toward the edge of theother major side of the cover member 32. Each ridge 34 has a generallyrectangular shape in section, stands erect from the bottom surface ofthe cover member 32, and extends until a position that is a little shortof the edge of the other major side. As will be understood from FIG.10A, among the ridges 34 formed on the cover member 32, the ridge 34Esituated at the end position of the cover member 32 (the rightmost ridge34E in FIG. 10A) that is opposite to the ridge 33E formed on thesubstrate 31 at the one end position thereof is formed at a position onthe cover member 32 by which an elongate region remains on the outsideof the ridge 34E, the elongate region having its area that issubstantially equal to that of the elongate region remaining on theoutside of the ridge 33E of the substrate 31 formed at the one endposition thereof.

[0052] The height and width of each ridge 33 of the substrate 31 aresubstantially equal to the height and width of each ridge 34 of thecover member 32, and the height is set in size to be substantially equalto the diameter of the optical fiber 1. The reason is that as shown inFIGS. 9, 10B and 10C, when the ridges 34 of the cover member 32 areengaged with the ridges 33 of the substrate 31, the optical fibers 11are brought into contact with the bottom surface of the cover member 32and the top surface of the substrate 31. In addition, the length of eachridge 33 of the substrate 31 is substantially equal to that of eachridge 34 of the cover member 32, and accordingly, the length and widthof each elongate space formed between the adjacent ridges 34 aresubstantially equal to the length and width of each elongate spaceformed between the adjacent ridges 33 of the substrate 31. The width ofeach space depends upon the fiber pitch of the optical fiber array, andin this embodiment, is set to be substantially equal to about threetimes the diameter of the optical fiber 11.

[0053] Now, a method of manufacturing an optical fiber array using thealigning implement 30 for optical fibers constructed as described abovewill be described with reference to FIGS. 10A to 10C and FIGS. 11A to11B.

[0054] First, as shown in FIGS. 10A and 11A, the optical fibers (coreand cladding) 11 are put in the corresponding spaces between theadjacent ridges 33 of the substrate 31 one fiber for one space and onthe elongate region outside of the ridge 33E positioned at the one endof the substrate 31. In such case, the portions of the optical fibers 11covered with the jackets 11B are put on the second area 31R of thesubstrate 31.

[0055] Next, the cover member 32 is placed over the first area 31L ofthe substrate 31, and then the ridges 34 of the cover member 32 areengaged with the ridges 33 of the substrate 31 in such manner that eachof the optical fibers 11 is positioned between the ridge 34 of the covermember 32 and the corresponding ridge 33 of the substrate 31, as shownin FIGS. 10B and 11B.

[0056] Next, the cover member 32 is slid, as shown in FIG. 10B by anarrow 37, in the direction that each optical fiber 11 will be caughtbetween the ridge 34 of the cover member 32 and the corresponding ridge33 of the substrate 31 (to the right-hand side in FIG. 10B). By thissliding of the cover member 32, the wall surface of the ridge 34 of thecover member 32 presses each optical fiber 11 against the wall surfaceof the corresponding ridge 33 of the substrate 31, and the opticalfibers 11 are nipped and held between the wall surfaces of the ridges 34and the wall surfaces of the ridges 33, respectively, as shown in FIG.10C.

[0057] Thus, each optical fiber 11 is positioned and held in its bothside portions by the wall surface of the ridge 34 of the cover member 32and the wall surface of the corresponding ridge 33 of the substrate 31as well as is positioned and held in its top and bottom portions by thebottom surface of the cover member 32 and the top surface of thesubstrate 31. As a result, the plural optical fibers 11 are aligned withthe predetermined pitch and with high precision. Moreover, each opticalfiber 11 has pushing forces or pressures applied thereto at the samepositions in the axial direction.

[0058] In the state that the optical fibers 11 have been positioned andaligned by the optical fiber aligning implement 30 as discussed above,as indicated in FIG. 9 by a chain or phantom line, an adhesive 38, forexample, is applied from the above of the jackets 11B of the opticalfibers 11 aligned and put on the second area 31R of the substrate 31 tothe jackets 11B. When the adhesive 38 is applied to the jackets 11B, itis preferable to slant the substrate 31 slightly so that the adhesive 38can flow toward the first area 31L of the substrate 31. As a result, thejackets 11B of the optical fibers 11 are adhered and fixed to thesubstrate 31, and further, the adhesive 38 flows toward the first area31L of the substrate 31 and enters between the substrate 31 and thecover member 32 so that the substrate 31 and the cover member 32 areadhered and fixed to each other as well as the optical fibers 11 areadhered and fixed to the substrate 31 and the cover member 32. As anadhesive, an epoxy system thermosetting adhesive may be used, forexample. It is needless to say that the jackets 11B of the opticalfibers 11 may be fixed to the substrate 31, the substrate 31 and thecover member 32 may be fixed to each other, and the optical fibers 11may be fixed to the substrate 31 and the cover member 32 by use of othermeans than an adhesive.

[0059] In case the optical fiber aligning implement 30 constructed asmentioned above is used, as can easily be understood from FIG. 11A, eachoptical fiber 11 is merely put in the space that is comparatively enoughroom for the optical fiber 11 between the adjacent ridges 33 of thesubstrate 31, and there is no need to align the optical fibers 11accurately. Accordingly, as compared with the prior art in which aplurality of optical fibers are disposed in the V-grooves one fiber forone groove, the work of putting the optical fibers 11 on the substrate31 becomes very easy and hence the working hours can be greatly reduced.Accordingly, the working efficiency is remarkably improved. In addition,the respective optical fibers 11 are positioned and held by engaging theridges 34 of the cover member 32 and the ridges 33 of the substrate 31with one another in such manner that each of the optical fibers 11 islocated between one of the ridges 34 of the cover member 32 and thecorresponding one of the ridges 33 of the substrate 31 and by slidingthe cover member 32 relative to the substrate 31. Therefore, eachoptical fiber 11 has pushing forces or pressures applied thereto at thesame positions in the axial direction. For this reason, there entirelyoccurs no problem that ends of the optical fibers are deviated ordeflected, for example, and hence the optical fibers 11 can bepositioned, held and aligned with high accuracy. As a result, by use ofthe optical fiber aligning implement of the first embodiment, theoptical fiber array shown in FIG. 9 can easily be fabricated with highaccuracy.

[0060] Further, in the first embodiment, the width of each ridge 33 ofthe substrate 31 and the width of each ridge 34 of the cover member 32are set to the same size or value. The widths of each ridge 34 and eachridge 33 may be set to such sizes that in case the cover member 32 andthe substrate 31 have been combined together (the ridges 34 of the covermember 32 and the ridges 33 of the substrate 3 1 have been engaged withone another) in such manner that each of the optical fibers 11 ispositioned between one of the ridges 34 of the cover member 32 and thecorresponding one of the ridges 33 of the substrate 3 1, the covermember 32 is movable relative to the substrate 31 in the direction thatthe respective optical fibers 11 are nipped and held by the cover member32 and the substrate 31. For example, assuming that the width of eachridge 34 and the width of each ridge 34 are set to the same value W, thealignment pitch of the optical fibers 11 is P, and the diameter of eachoptical fiber 11 is D, the width W of each ridge 33 and 34 may be set tohave a value defined by the following inequality.

W<(P−D)/2

[0061] In such case, if the width W of each ridge 33 and 34 is set tohave a value defined by an inequality W<<(P−D)/2, each space between theadjacent ridges 33 of the substrate 31 is further increased in its width(each space between the adjacent ridges 34 of the cover member 32 isalso further increased in its width). As a result, there is obtained anadvantage that the work of putting the optical fibers 11 on thesubstrate 31 becomes much easier.

[0062] Portions of the optical fibers 11 projecting from the end surfaceof the optical fiber aligning implement 30 are severed and removed toprovide a finished optical fiber array shown in FIG. 9. It is preferredthat after the projecting portions of the optical fibers 11 have beensevered, the end surface of the optical fibers 11 are grinded andpolished. In such case, the end surface of the optical fiber aligningimplement 30 (the end surfaces of the cover member 32 and the substrate31) may be grinded and polished together with the end surfaces of theoptical fibers 11.

[0063] Further, though not shown, there may be such a utilization thatportions of the optical fibers 11 projecting from the end surface of theoptical fiber aligning implement 30 are cut even in a state that a fixedlength of each optical fiber 11 is projected from the end surface of theoptical fiber aligning implement 30, the projecting portions of a fixedlength of the optical fibers 11 are put in V-grooves of a substrate oneprojecting portion for one V-groove, the pitch of the V-grooves of thesubstrate being the same as that of the optical fibers 11, and they arecoupled to the substrate.

[0064] Next, a second embodiment of the aligning implement for opticalfibers according to the present invention will be described withreference to FIGS. 12 and 13.

[0065] This optical fiber aligning implement of the second embodimentcomprises a substrate 45 shown in FIG. 12 and a cover member 46 shown inFIG. 13. The substrate 45 is a plate-like member having a generallyrectangular shape in plan as shown in FIG. 12, and likewise thesubstrate 31 in the first embodiment, on substantially the centralportion of one surface (the top surface in this embodiment) of thesubstrate 45 is formed a step portion 35 extending linearly from theupper end thereof to the lower end thereof so that a first and a secondareas 45L and 45R differing in thickness (height) thereof from eachother are formed on both sides (left-hand side and right-hand side inthe figure) of the linear step portion 35. The first area 45L has agenerally square shape in plan and the second area 45R has a generallyrectangular shape in plan. On the first area 45L are formed a pluralityof (eight, in this embodiment) ridges or ribs 33 in parallel with oneanother with a predetermined pitch therebetween and with high accuracy.The ridges 33 extend from the left-hand edge of the first area 45Ltoward the second area 45R. The pitch of the ridges 33 is set to beequal to the pitch of optical fibers of an optical fiber array to befabricated. Each ridge 33 has a generally rectangular shape in section,stands erect from the top surface of the substrate 45, and extends untila position that is a little short of the step portion 35. In addition,the second area 45R has its thickness thinner (its height lower) thanthat of the first area 45L.

[0066] In this second embodiment, on both sides of a generallyrectangular area on which the eight ridges 33 are aligned and juxtaposedare formed elongate first and second cover member riding portions 43Aand 43B on the first area 45L in the direction orthogonal to the ridges33. The first and second cover member riding portions 43A and 43B havethe same height as that of the ridge 33 and the same length as that ofthe ridge 33. The width of the first cover member riding portion 43Aformed on the upper side portion in the figure is wider than that of thesecond cover member riding portion 43B formed on the lower side portionin the figure. At substantially the central portions of the first andsecond cover member riding portions 43A and 43B are formed respectivelya first guide groove 41A of a predetermined width and a second guidegroove 41B of a predetermined width in the direction orthogonal to theridges 33. These guide grooves 41A and 41B have a generally rectangularor square shape in section.

[0067] The cover member 46 is a plate-like member having a generallysquare shape in plan as shown in FIG. 13A, and likewise the cover member32 in the first embodiment, has a plurality of (eight, in thisembodiment) ridges or ribs 34 formed on one surface thereof in parallelwith one another with the same pitch as that of the ridges 33 of thesubstrate 45 and with high accuracy. The ridges 34 extend from theleft-hand edge in the figure of the cover member 46 toward theright-hand edge thereof opposed to the left-hand edge. Each ridge 34 hasa generally rectangular shape in section, stands erect from the bottomsurface of the cover member 46, and extends until a position that is alittle short of the right-hand edge.

[0068] On both sides of a generally rectangular area on which the ridges34 are aligned and juxtaposed are provided elongate first and secondregions 46A and 46B in the direction orthogonal to the ridges 34. Thefirst and second regions 46A and 46B have substantially the same area.At substantially the central portions of the first and second regions46A and 46B are formed respectively a first protrusion 42A and a secondprotrusion 42B in the direction orthogonal to the ridges 34. The firstand second protrusions 42A and 42B have the same height as that of theridge 34. These protrusions 42A and 42B have a generally rectangular orsquare shape in section. The length of the first protrusion 42A is setto be substantially equal to the length of the second guide groove 41Bof the substrate 45 and the width thereof is set to have such a valuethat the first protrusion 42A can be fitted in the second guide groove41B of the substrate 45 and slide in the direction orthogonal to theridges 34. The length of the second protrusion 42B is set to besubstantially equal to the length of the first guide groove 41A of thesubstrate 45 and the width thereof is set to have such a value that thesecond protrusion 42B can be fitted in the first guide groove 41A of thesubstrate 45 and slide in the direction orthogonal to the ridges 34.

[0069] In this manner, with the first and second guide grooves 41A and41B provided on the substrate 45 as well as the first and secondprotrusions 42A and 42B provided on the cover member 46, which arefitted in the guide grooves 41B and 41A respectively and guided in thedirection orthogonal to the ridges 33 (34), as in the first embodiment,in case of positioning the cover member 46 over the first area 45L ofthe substrate 45 and assembling the cover member 46 and the substrate 45in such manner that each of the optical fibers is positioned between theridge 34 of the cover member 46 and the corresponding ridge 33 of thesubstrate 45, the second protrusion 42B of the cover member 46 is fittedin the first guide groove 41A of the substrate 45 and the firstprotrusion 42A of the cover member 46 is fitted in the second guidegroove 41B of the substrate 45. Accordingly, when the cover member 46 isslid in the direction that each optical fiber will be caught between theridge 34 of the cover member 46 and the corresponding ridge 33 of thesubstrate 45, the first and second protrusions 42A and 42B of the covermember 46 are guided by the second and first guide grooves 41B and 41Aof the substrate 45 respectively in the direction orthogonal to theridges 33 (34). That is, the cover member 46 is reliably slides in thedirection orthogonal to the ridges 33 (34) with the parallelism betweenthe ridges 33 of the substrate 45 and the ridges 34 of the cover member46 maintained. As a result, the optical fibers slide reliably andstably, and hence there is obtained an advantage that work ofpositioning and holding the optical fibers by the wall surfaces of theridges 34 of the cover member 46 and the wall surfaces of thecorresponding ridges 33 of the substrate 45 can be well carried out withhigh reliability.

[0070] Further, it is needless to say that if the first and second guidegrooves 41A and 41B may be provided on the cover member 46 and the firstand second protrusions 42A and 42B for being fitted in the guide grooves41 B and 41 A respectively and guiding the cover member 46 in thedirection orthogonal to the ridges 33 (34) may be provided on thesubstrate 45, the same function and effects can be obtained. Inaddition, the number of the guide grooves and the number of theprotrusions are not limited to two.

[0071]FIGS. 14A to 14C are front views for explaining a manufacturingprocess of the optical fiber array according to the present inventionfabricated by use of a third embodiment of the aligning implement foroptical fibers according to the present invention. This optical fiberaligning implement 50 of the third embodiment comprises a substrate 51that is a plate-like member having a generally rectangular or squareshape in plan and a cover member 52 that is a plate-like member having agenerally rectangular shape in plan, likewise the first embodiment. Theoptical fiber aligning implement 50 may be one that has the sameconstruction, structure and shape as those of the first embodimentalready discussed with reference to FIGS. 9 to 11 except that aplurality of ridges or ribs 33 each having a generally isoscelestrapezoidal shape in section are formed on the substrate 51 and aplurality of ridges or ribs 34 each having a generally isoscelestrapezoidal shape in section are formed on the cover member 52, andtherefore, the detailed explanation thereof will be omitted.

[0072] As stated above, in case of forming on the substrate 51 and thecover member 52 a plurality of ridges 33 and 34 each having a generallyisosceles trapezoidal or trapezoidal or triangular shape in section, asshown in FIG. 14B, the ridges 34 of the cover member 52 also can beengaged with the ridges 33 of the substrate 51 in such manner that eachof the optical fibers 11 is positioned between the ridge 34 of the covermember 52 and the corresponding ridge 33 of the substrate 51. Inaddition, since the slant wall surfaces of the ridges 34 of the covermember 52 and the slant wall surfaces of the corresponding ridges 33 ofthe substrate 51 are substantially in parallel with each other, when thecover member 52 is slid in the direction of an arrow 37 shown in thefigure, each optical fiber 11 is moved by the slant wall surface of eachridge 34 of the cover member 52 toward the slant wall surface of thecorresponding ridge 33 of the substrate 51 and is firmly nipped and heldbetween these slant wall surfaces as shown in FIG. 14C. As a result,likewise the first embodiment, by use of the optical fiber aligningimplement 50 of the third embodiment, the plural optical fibers 11 canbe positioned, held and aligned with high precision. Thus, if theoptical fiber aligning implement 50 of the third embodiment is used, theoptical fiber array shown in FIG. 14C can easily be fabricated with highaccuracy.

[0073] The substrate 51 having the ridges 33 formed thereon each havinga generally isosceles trapezoidal shape in section discussed above andthe cover member 52 having the ridges 34 formed thereon each having agenerally isosceles trapezoidal shape in section discussed above mayeasily be manufactured with high accuracy by, for example, applying ananisotropic wet etching to a single crystal silicon substrate.

[0074]FIGS. 15 and 16 show a fourth embodiment of the aligning implementfor optical fibers according to the present invention comprising thesubstrate 51 and the cover member 52 in the above third embodimentexcept that the substrate 51 has a first and a second guide grooves 53Aand 53B (53A is not seen in the figure) corresponding to the first andthe second guide grooves 41A and 41B in the second embodiment providedin a first and a second cover member riding portions 54A and 54B(corresponding to the first and the second cover member riding portions43A and 43B in the second embodiment) of the substrate 51 and that thecover member 52 has a first and a second protrusions 55A and 55B(corresponding to the first and the second protrusions 42A and 42B inthe second embodiment) provided thereon, the first and the secondprotrusions 55A and 55B being fitting in the second and the first guidegrooves 53B and 53A and being guided in the direction orthogonal to theridges 33 (34). FIG. 15A is a front view showing the optical fiberaligning implement 60 of the fourth embodiment comprising the substrate51 having the guide grooves 53A and 53B formed thereon and the covermember 52 having the protrusions 55A and 55B formed thereon in a statethat the cover member 52 and the substrate 51 are being separated, andFIG. 15B is a right-hand side view of FIG. 15A. FIG. 16A is a front viewshowing the optical fiber aligning implement 60 of the fourth embodimentin a state that the cover member 52 and the substrate 51 are engagedwith each other, and FIG. 16B is a right-hand side view of FIG. 16A.Further, in FIGS. 15B and 16B, a reference character 35 denotes a stepportion that is formed at substantially the central portion of thesubstrate 51 and extending linearly from the upper end thereof to thelower end thereof, likewise the first, second and third embodiments.

[0075] With the construction of the fourth embodiment mentioned above,it is clear that the same advantages as those of the second embodimentcan be obtained, and explanation thereof will be omitted. Further, inthe fourth embodiment, it is needless to say that if the first andsecond guide grooves 53A and 53B may be provided on the cover member 52and the first and second protrusions 55A and 55B for being fitting inthe guide grooves 53B and 53A respectively and guiding the cover member52 in the direction orthogonal to the ridges 33 (34) may be provided onthe substrate 51, the same function and effects can be obtained. Inaddition, the number of the guide grooves and the number of theprotrusions are not limited to two.

[0076] The substrate 51 and the cover member 52 of the optical fiberaligning implement 60 of the fourth embodiment may easily bemanufactured with high accuracy by, for example, applying an anisotropicwet etching to a single crystal silicon substrate. At first, a method ofmanufacturing the substrate 51 will be described with reference to FIGS.17 and 18.

[0077]FIGS. 17A to 17G are front views for explaining a manufacturingprocess of the substrate 51 of the optical fiber aligning implement 60shown in FIGS. 15A and 16A, and FIGS. 18A to 18G are right-hand sideviews of FIGS. 17A to 17G, respectively.

[0078] As shown in FIGS. 17A and 18A, there is prepared a plate-likesingle crystal silicon substrate 62 of a generally rectangle or squarein plan that has an oxide film (thermally oxidized film) 61 formed onthe top surface thereof. Next, by use of photolithography technology,the oxide film 61 on the top surface of the silicon substrate 62 isetched to remove a portion of the oxide film 61 corresponding to an areaof the silicon substrate 62 on which the sheathings (jackets) 11B (referto FIGS. 9 and 11) of the optical fibers 11 are to be put, as shown inFIGS. 17B and 18B.

[0079] Thereafter, the silicon substrate 62 is etched by an anisotropicwet etching using the remaining oxide film 61 as a mask. As a result, asshown in FIGS. 17C and 18C, the portion of the silicon substrate 62 notcovered with the oxide film 62 is etched and removed by a predeterminedthickness thereby to form the step portion 35 and the area 51R on whichthe jackets 11B of the optical fibers 11 are to be put (a thinner areaof a generally rectangle or square in plan on right-hand side of thestep portion 35 in FIG. 15B).

[0080] After the remaining oxide film 61 on the top surface of thesilicon substrate 62 has been removed, as shown in FIGS. 17D and 18D, anoxide film 63 is again formed on all the top surface of the siliconsubstrate 62. Then, by use of photolithography technology, the oxidefilm 63 on the top surface of the silicon substrate 62 is etched toleave portions of the oxide film 62 corresponding to areas of thesilicon substrate 62 on which the ridges 33 are to be formed as well asthe first and the second cover member riding portions 54A and 54B are tobe formed, as shown in FIGS. 17E and 18E. In this etching, as shown inFIG. 18E, portions of the oxide film 63 corresponding to areas of thecentral portions of the first and the second cover member ridingportions 54A and 54B in which the first and the second guide grooves 53Aand 53B are to be formed are removed. That is, a patterning of the oxidefilm 63 is carried out to leave portions of the oxide film 63corresponding to the shapes or patterns of the ridges 33 as well as thefirst and the second cover member riding portions 54A and 54B.

[0081] Next, the silicon substrate 62 is etched by an anisotropic wetetching using the patterned (remaining) oxide film 63 as a mask. As aresult, as shown in FIGS. 17F and 18F, there are formed the plural(eight in this example) ridges 33 aligned in parallel with one anotherwith high precision, each ridge 33 having a generally isoscelestrapezoidal shape in section, the first and the second cover memberriding portions 54A and 54B each having a generally rectangular shape inplan, and the first and the second guide grooves 53A and 53B (the guidegroove 53B is not seen in the figures) each having a generally isoscelestrapezoidal shape in section.

[0082] Thereafter, the remaining oxide film 63 on the top surface of thesilicon substrate 62 is removed. Thus, the substrate 51 has beencompleted as shown in FIGS. 17G and 18G. Further, in practice, manysubstrates 51 are fabricated on a silicon substrate at the same time bythe manufacturing process described above and thereafter, are separatedto individual chips (substrates 51) by dicing.

[0083] Next, a method of manufacturing the cover member 52 will bedescribed with reference to FIGS. 19 and 20. Further, in order toconform usage of the cover member 52, in FIGS. 19 and 20, the surfacethereof on which the ridges 34 and the first and the second protrusions55A and 55B are to be formed is shown as the bottom surface of the covermember 52 in these figures.

[0084] At first, as shown in FIGS. 19A and 20A, there is prepared aplate-like single crystal silicon substrate 65 of a generally rectangleor square in plan that has an oxide film 64 formed on the surface (thebottom surface in the figures) of the silicon substrate 65. Next, by useof photolithography technology, the oxide film 64 on the bottom surfaceof the silicon substrate 65 is etched to leave portions of the oxidefilm 64 corresponding to areas of the silicon substrate 65 on which theridges 34 are to be formed as well as the first and the secondprotrusions 55A and 55B are to be formed, as shown in FIGS. 19B and 20B.That is, a patterning of the oxide film 64 is done to leave portions ofthe oxide film 64 corresponding to the shapes or patterns of the ridges34 as well as the first and the second protrusions 55A and 55B.

[0085] Next, the silicon substrate 65 is etched by an anisotropic wetetching using the patterned (remaining) oxide film 64 as a mask. As aresult, as shown in FIGS. 19C and 20C, there are formed the plural(eight in this example) ridges 34 aligned in parallel with one anotherwith high precision, each having a generally isosceles trapezoidal shapein section, and the first and the second protrusions 55A and 55B eachhaving a generally isosceles trapezoidal shape in section.

[0086] Thereafter, the remaining oxide film 64 on the top surface of thesilicon substrate 65 is removed. Thus, the cover member 52 has beencompleted as shown in FIGS. 19D and 20D. Further, in case of the covermember 52, too, many cover members 52 are fabricated on a siliconsubstrate at the same time, in practice, by the manufacturing processdescribed above and are separated to individual chips (cover members 52)by dicing.

[0087] As described above, in case a single crystal silicon substrate isused and that the substrate 51 and the cover member 52 are manufacturedby use of photolithography technology and an anisotropic wet etching,there can easily be formed with high precision the plural ridges 33 and34 aligned in parallel with one another with a predetermined pitch.Moreover, there is obtained an advantage that simultaneously with theformation of the ridges 33 and 34, the first and second guide grooves53A and 53B as well as the first and second protrusions 55A and 55B caneasily be formed with high accuracy.

[0088] Further, there can be also manufactured by use of a singlecrystal silicon substrate, as discussed above, the substrate 45 shown inFIG. 12 that has the plural ridges 33 of a generally rectangle insection and the first and second guide grooves 41A and 41B of agenerally rectangle in section and the cover member 46 shown in FIG. 13that has the plural ridges 34 of a generally rectangle in section andthe first and second protrusions 42A and 42B of a generally rectangle insection. In such case, it is preferred that the ridges 33 and 34 eachhaving vertical side surfaces (side walls) from the surface of thesubstrate, the protrusions 42A and 42B each having vertical sidesurfaces (side walls) from the surface of the substrate, and the likeare formed by applying a dry etching to the single crystal siliconsubstrate. As the above dry etching, deep-RIE (Reactive Ion Etching)technology can be used.

[0089] In addition, without using a silicon substrate, the substrate 45as shown in FIG. 12 and the cover member 46 as shown in FIG. 13 may bemanufactured, for example, by using a metal such as a stainless steel orthe like and cutting the metal.

[0090] As is apparent from the foregoing explanation, with the opticalfiber aligning implement according to the present invention, eachoptical fiber is merely put in the space that is comparatively enoughroom for the optical fiber between the adjacent ridges of the substrate,and there is no need to align the optical fibers accurately.Accordingly, there is unnecessary a very complicated and troublesomework that requires great skill in which a plurality of optical fibersare disposed in V-grooves one fiber for one groove and accuratelyaligned, as in the prior art. Consequently, the work of putting theoptical fibers on the substrate becomes very easy and the working hourscan be greatly reduced, which results in an advantage that the workingefficiency is remarkably improved.

[0091] In addition, the ridges of the cover member and the ridges of thesubstrate are merely engaged with one another in such manner that eachof the optical fibers is located between one of the ridges of the covermember and the corresponding one of the ridges of the substrate, and therespective optical fibers are positioned and held by sliding the covermember relative to the substrate-thereby to nip each optical fiberbetween the two wall surfaces of the two ridges. Therefore, each opticalfiber has pushing forces or pressures applied thereto at the samepositions in the axial direction. For this reason, the optical fiberscan be stably positioned, held and aligned with high reliability. Thus,by use of the optical fiber aligning implement according to the presentinvention, there is obtained an advantage that the optical fiber arraycan easily be fabricated with high accuracy.

[0092] While the present invention has been described with regard to thepreferred embodiments shown byway of example, it will be apparent tothose skilled in the art that various modifications, alterations,changes, and/or minor improvements of the embodiments described abovecan be made without departing from the spirit and the scope of thepresent invention. Accordingly, it should be understood that the presentinvention is not limited to the illustrated embodiments, and is intendedto encompass all such modifications, alterations, changes, and/or minorimprovements falling within the scope of the invention defined by theappended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. An aligning implement for optical fibers foraligning a plurality of optical fibers, that is adapted to be used in anoptical fiber array having a plurality of optical fibers alignedsubstantially in parallel with one another with a predetermined pitchtherebetween, said aligning implement comprising: a substrate having aplurality of ridges formed on one surface of the substrate substantiallyin parallel with one another with said predetermined pitch; and a covermember having a plurality of ridges formed on one surface of the covermember substantially in parallel with one another with saidpredetermined pitch, and wherein the width of the ridges of thesubstrate and the width of the ridges of the cover member are set tohave such values that the cover member is movable relative to thesubstrate in the direction substantially orthogonal to the ridges in astate that the ridges of the substrate and the ridges of the covermember are engaged with one another; and the substrate and the covermember are arranged such that in the state that the ridges of thesubstrate and the ridges of the cover member are engaged with oneanother, sliding of the cover member in the direction substantiallyorthogonal to the ridges relative to the substrate causes each opticalfiber to be nipped, positioned and held between the wall surface of eachridge of the substrate and the wall surface of each corresponding ridgeof the cover member.
 2. The aligning implement for optical fibers as setforth in claim 1, wherein the one surface of the substrate is formedsuch that the thickness of one side thereof is thicker than that of theother side thereof, and the ridges are formed on the thicker sidesurface and optical fibers each having a sheathing are put on thethinner side surface.
 3. The aligning implement for optical fibers asset forth in claim 1, wherein at least one guide groove is formed oneither one of the substrate or the cover member in the directionsubstantially orthogonal to the ridges, and on the other of thesubstrate or the cover member is formed at least one protrusion that isfitted in and guided by the guide groove.
 4. The aligning implement foroptical fibers as set forth in claim 2, wherein at least one guidegroove is formed on either one of the substrate or the cover member inthe direction substantially orthogonal to the ridges, and on the otherof the substrate or the cover member is formed at least one protrusionthat is fitted in and guided by the guide groove.
 5. The aligningimplement for optical fibers as set forth in claim 1, wherein both thesubstrate and the cover member are formed by applying an anisotropic wetetching to a silicon substrate.
 6. The aligning implement for opticalfibers as set forth in claim 2, wherein both the substrate and the covermember are formed by applying an anisotropic wet etching to a siliconsubstrate.
 7. The aligning implement for optical fibers as set forth inclaim 3, wherein both the substrate and the cover member are formed byapplying an anisotropic wet etching to a silicon substrate.
 8. Thealigning implement for optical fibers as set forth in claim 4, whereinboth the substrate and the cover member are formed by applying ananisotropic wet etching to a silicon substrate.
 9. The aligningimplement for optical fibers as set forth in claim 1, wherein both thesubstrate and the cover member are formed by applying a dry etching to asilicon substrate.
 10. The aligning implement for optical fibers as setforth in claim 2, wherein both the substrate and the cover member areformed by applying a dry etching to a silicon substrate.
 11. Thealigning implement for optical fibers as set forth in claim 3, whereinboth the substrate and the cover member are formed by applying a dryetching to a silicon substrate.
 12. The aligning implement for opticalfibers as set forth in claim 4, wherein both the substrate and the covermember are formed by applying a dry etching to a silicon substrate. 13.An optical fiber array comprising the aligning implement for opticalfibers as set forth in claim
 1. 14. An optical fiber array comprisingthe aligning implement for optical fibers as set forth in claim
 2. 15.An optical fiber array comprising the aligning implement for opticalfibers as set forth in claim
 3. 16. An optical fiber array comprisingthe aligning implement for optical fibers as set forth in claim
 4. 17.An optical fiber array comprising the aligning implement for opticalfibers as set forth in claim
 5. 18. An optical fiber array comprisingthe aligning implement for optical fibers as set forth in claim
 6. 19.An optical fiber array comprising the aligning implement for opticalfibers as set forth in claim
 7. 20. An optical fiber array comprisingthe aligning implement for optical fibers as set forth in claim
 8. 21.An optical fiber array comprising the aligning implement for opticalfibers as set forth in claim
 9. 22. An optical fiber array comprisingthe aligning implement for optical fibers as set forth in claim
 10. 23.An optical fiber array comprising the aligning implement for opticalfibers as set forth in claim
 11. 24. An optical fiber array comprisingthe aligning implement for optical fibers as set forth in claim 12.